Stitch n Chat

Well hello lovely ones, how are we all? Hope this finds you well & everyone is gearing up to the summer, sunshine, bbqs & those sit & crochet moments in the sun. We seem to have started early here. BBQ’s & pizza ovens are a go go. We were enjoying the warmer weather, but it seems to have vanished at the moment. Definitely layers and rain coats at the moment. We had a great time in Cornwall recently. But the weather was definitely interesting. One minute it was blue skies and sun, and the next it was blowing a gale and raining. Much prefer sock knitting in the sun! My The Yarn Badger Advent socks are working up a treat.

I’ve currently had the delight of being able to run two regular crochet groups. Well, one crochet club at school for the Year 6 children at lunch every week and one Stitch n Chat for adults. They have been really well attended . My Crochet Club at school is getting busier by the week. More little faces keep popping around the door asking if they can come in & have a go. Or parents stopping me on the school run asking if their child can attend. We seem to have sneaked many in recently, so the room is full of laughter & fun. It’s amazing what they create each week. Some are absolutely flying. One girl came in last week with the beginnings of a crocheted jumper!! I mean how crazy is that! Just like that she started it on a car journey! She came in this week with it finished and some wrist warmers made too. Amazing. I love how children can just have an idea & create it. Without any panic or fear & oh I’ll do it later! I wonder what she will create next. I think I need to take a leaf out of her book & just go for it & stop worrying about the end product! Only a few weeks left with this little group. I am definitely going to miss them. They are a great bunch and so lively and happy to have a go. This is our fourth year now that we have done the group and I hope to carry it on as long as I can. This is the biggest group we have had so far, think there was 20 of them this week. Just think 20 little crocheters going out in the world. What a wonderful thought.

Our other Stitch n Chat Club is also going strong. We seem to be meeting more regularly now, which is good! Amazingly we were all knitting socks the other day! Seems to be the thing at the minute! I’ve been teaching my Mum & my friend to make them! They are such a great project to take around with you. Very transportable & except for the heel & toe, it’s just knitting in the round, which is so calming. Especially helpful when you are supposed to be navigating in the car! Whoops!!

The only problem is when we travel in the dark. I do use the crochet hooks that light up, but they aren’t as good I don’t think. I did find I can knit in the dark, but it’s easier if it’s DK yarn. Hmm…. maybe I need to start a new pair of DK socks!?!? I did get some wool for my birthday. Well I got a couple! Maybe it’s time to start one! Knitting socks in the dark on a big journey! Win win! 

Haha… I seem to have come off track! Always happens when you start thinking of new WIPs! They are just too tempting. It’s the possibilities that get under your skin. The new creations created by those yummy yarny squishy balls of wool…. ooops, there I go again.

Right so I was just going on to talk about the importance of yarny groups & even the ability to crochet & knit in public! I remember the first time we met as a group in the pub. It definitely didn’t feel quite natural.

We did get a few quizzical looks. Haha! No one said anything. But you could tell they were wondering what we were doing. But then as time went on, crocheting/knitting as a group became more natural. And now, I genuinely miss it when we don’t meet up. It’s the chat and banter of people from different ages or different backgrounds that I love. And the support we can give each other. Recommendations for physiotherapist and electricians or offering advice on experiences. Or even just listening to someone, when life is not going their way. And then on the other hand, having a little moment to crochet and knit away from the daily runnings of life and sharing all the squishy yarn too!! Just magical. We meet at different places, sometimes it’s only a few of us and we might go to someone’s house. But other times it’s cafe’s or a pub in the evening. Always nice to do the pub, but always tricky to fit it around my little ladies clubs!

There are lots of group like ours around the country, so I really hope that you can find one. I came across this whilst in Cornwall. It was in a great pub called The Royal Oak in Perranwell Station.

I really hope you all have a safe little space outside your home, where you can crochet and knit. Even if it is just on your own for now. Or maybe you might have been thinking about joining a group and just not had the courage to go. This is your chance. Take that brave step… you wont regret it. A new little group of yarny friends is just around the corner. Hope you find them.

Have a great rest of their weekend all.

Happy Hooking.
🌈Xx

Continue Reading

Waiting Rooms

Well hello my lovely ones. How are we all? It’s a cold, wet and grim day here. Definitely a day that you need to stay in as much as possible. I’ve just managed a yoga class. I haven’t been in ages, so you can imagine that it definitely woke up some of my joints!! I have a funny feeling they won’t be happy later. Ouch! Oh well. Definitely important to keep the old dodgy joints ticking over. That’s always my excuse for crocheting and knitting so much – it keeps my hands warm and working!! Haha!!

How is everyone’s yarny projects going? I seem to have quite a lot of WIP’s at the minute. But really trying to finish some of them, so that I only have a few on the go at the same time. It’s definitely not a problem to have a few different ones on the go. I like to keep small, easy projects, that I can take with me for every eventuality. This is usually a pair of knitted socks. It’s so small, that it can fit in your pocket. So always have a pair on the go. Another slightly bigger project that goes with me, is my Around the World Cowl from the gorgeous yarn club from For the Love of Yarn. https://fortheloveofyarn.co.uk/

It’s 4ply yarn again and it’s at the beginning stages, so definitely one to fit in my bag on trips out. It’s coming along nicely and I hope to share the pattern soon.

I had one of those magical moments with it yesterday. It was actually the first time this has ever happened to me, which is a shame, but I am hoping it won’t be the last. I went to the hospital for my regular bloods and it was absolutely rammed. It’s usually only a waiting space of one corridor, but this stretched out to 3 corridors and 2 waiting rooms. Must remember, Monday is not a good day to go!! I did get a seat, so got myself comfy for a long wait with my Around the World Cowl happily being worked on my lap. But then there was an old couple that couldn’t sit together, so I jumped up to offer my seat. (As any normal human being would do!) But then as I roamed the corridors in hope of another seat, there she was. This lovely lady crocheting a blue flower blanket for one of her daughters! Well, the speed in which I sat down and started chatting, may have come across as a little alarming, but hey, I was a little bit excited and realised I wasn’t a crazy lady as soon as I got my crocheting out! In all my time of waiting rooms, I have never seen or sat by anyone crocheting! I am usually the one that gets the slightly funny looks or the questions as to what are you making. And how their gran used to crochet and they never learnt. So we wallowed away nearly an hour of yarny chatting before it was her turn to go in. It was so lovely. Her name was Ann and she’d been knitting for years, but learnt to crochet recently and even taught a couple of her friends too! She did put me to shame though. I had only got my small ball of wool with me and if I had been waiting much longer, I would have run out of crocheting. (Ekk, a shiver just ran down my spine!! Imagine that!) The lady on the other hand, had 3 other little balls of wool in her bag on the off chance that she might run out!! I felt very unprepared, which doesn’t come naturally to me. So in true Ann style, I think I may need to check myself in future and ensure that when you are out and about crocheting or knitting and definitely in a waiting room on a Monday, that – YOU DON’T RUN OUT OF WOOL!!

On other news, I have been having a little go on my sewing machine. I bought a box of canvas offcuts from Nu at Hide and Hammer. https://hideandhammer.co.uk/ She pops them on her website every so often, as she never throws anything away, it’s a great idea for others to use it. As some of you have seen I made these little pouches last week.

The iced bag one has been great attached to my drinks bottle for the gym. It houses my AirPod case and car keys. And phone too, if I’m not using it.

The mustard oil skin has housed my little The Yarn Badger Advent sock set that I am working on at the moment.

So I reckoning I could definitely make a few more. My son wants some for his lego and bits for when we go out. So that will be a little project. I am hoping to make myself a little knitted needle roll, which I have in the past made for my Mum. But I think my one might have to wait. Too many things to do. Too little time to do it! We shall see. I have invested in a little leather foot for my machine is great.

It’s so easy to go around corners and a great way to sew very near to an edge. Would highly recommend getting one for your own machine if you can. I bet you could use it for all sorts of things.

Well on that note I had better say my fair wells. I will be posting up the new Around the World Cowl pattern up for anyone that would like to make one. It’s a 5 stitch repeat, worked up in a circle. I am using 5 different colours each month from the Around the World Club from Lisa at For the Love of Yarn, but you can use any colour combo that you like.

I also have a little Easter crochet project coming out too! It’s another one of my Egglebert family! So hope you like the new addiction!

Anyways. Hope everyone has great days.
Happy hooking!
🌈 Xx

Continue Reading
1 2 3 38